This invention relates to toy vehicles, and more particularly, to toy vehicles having retractable wheels which can be employed to cause the vehicle to perform a stunt.
Lohr, U.S. Pat. No. 2,124,302 discloses a wind-up toy car that can run on any of a plurality of complex paths. A fifth cross wheel can be lowered periodically into engagement with the playing surface by the drive of the motor. The angle through which the vehicle is turned when the cross wheel is engaged can be varied by fixing the cross wheel in any of a plurality of angles or steering positions.
Wolgamut, U.S. Pat. No. 3,984,939, discloses a toy car having a fifth wheel that engages the playing surface and thereby induces the toy to skid in response to the removal from the car's roof of a toy figure. The fifth, skid-inducing wheel is positionable in a plurality of angular orientations. A lever that extends through the windshield can be adjusted to override the wheel actuator and to prevent the fifth wheel from engaging the ground.
Stohrer, U.S. Pat. No. 3,481,072, discloses a toy vehicle having two cams. One cam controls a steering wheel, mounted on the forward end of the body, and the second cam engages the locomotion wheel to move the vehicle forward or reverse, or to remain stationary. The cams are made up of sectors of varying radii. By arranging the cam sectors as desired, the user can determine the path of the vehicle.
Swenson, U.S. Pat. No. 2,421,041, discloses a toy car capable of traversing any selected one of a plurality of paths determined by the contours of a pair of cams selected from a plurality of pairs. In each pair, one cam determines the angular orientation of the fifth steering wheel over time, and the second cam determines the pattern of forward and backward motion and of stationary periods of the toy. Cam pairs are selected by moving a handle, projecting from slots.
Carl, U.S. Pat. No. 2,070,465, discloses a toy tank provided with a control disk that rotates in synchrony with the driving wheel. Numbers marked around the circumference of the control disk indicate the distance travelled by the vehicle. Pins inserted along the periphery of the disk on either the right or left side of the disk engage brakes on the right or left wheel, respectively, causing the vehicle to turn when it has travelled the distance marked on the control wheel where a pin is inserted.
De Fillipis, U.S. Pat. No. 1,756,539, discloses a toy vehicle provided with a horizontal disk that rotates in synchrony with the wheels. On the disk is a series of concentric grooves having different patterns. The user selects a groove by inserting in that groove a pin which is rigidly attached to a lever that in turn is connected to the front axle. The pattern of the selected groove on the horizontal disk determines the path travelled by the car.